In a protest against dairy products, vegan activists today spilt milk over two upscale department shops in London. After one of the stores was cleared by security, a brave customer attempted to accuse the other of assault.
The two were identified as Sofia Fernandes Pontes from Madeira and Steve Bone from Essex by Animal Rebellion, a branch of the Extinction Rebellion movement, and footage of their demonstrations at Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges was made public.
The animal rights organization also said that during the Selfridges demonstration, one of the protesters was “assaulted by a member of the public,” which looked to occur when a guy placed his arm in front of Ms. Fernandes Pontes’ neck.
In the footage, the bystander can be seen attempting to stop Ms. Fernandes Pontes as she walks away by grasping her neck with his extended arm. Security personnel then led the protestors to the door.
Onlookers were enraged by the demonstration inside Selfridges, with one demanding an employee off-camera, “Do you guys not intervene?” The employee said, “We’re not authorized to.” A other bystander said, “F***ing embarrassed of yourself.” The guy yelled, “T*ss off, now,” as the protestors eventually began to leave the shop. Be off your a**.
However, the Metropolitan Police subsequently acknowledged that it had not made any arrests in connection with either incident despite sent police to both establishments in response to accusations of criminal damage. However, detectives said that further information was being sought.
After the protest, the National Farmers’ Union took the lead in denouncing the activists’ actions. Dairy board chair Michael Oakes told MailOnline today: “British dairy products, such as milk, cheese, and yoghurt, are staples of people’s diets up and down the country, providing essential nutrition at a reasonable price.
Farmers have been surprised to see supply lines obstructed, disrupted, and food purposefully squandered in this manner at a time of cost-of-living crisis, when many people must make tough decisions about choosing between heating and feeding.
When it comes to producing high-quality dairy products from inedible grass, British dairy farming is already at the forefront of the industry, and the country hopes to achieve net zero production by 2040.
The public really values our excellent animal welfare and production standards and understands that selecting British means consuming climate-friendly food, he said.
The demonstrations started at 11.45 a.m. when a bearded man and a lady in a white dress—whom Animal Rebellion subsequently identified as Mr. Bone and Ms. Fernandes Pontes—entered Fortnum & Mason on Piccadilly.
They dumped milk bottles on the red carpet of the shop after removing them from the shelves.
They were caught on camera at Selfridges on Oxford Street just after at 12.30 p.m. blatantly dumping milk over a cheese counter before being escorted out by security.
Mother and student Ms. Fernandes Pontes from the Portuguese island of Madeira stated: “I don’t want my children to grow up in a world where there is hunger, deforestation, and drought.”
“I want children to see a beautiful and homely world.” If we want to see a better future for everyone, we must make the switch to a plant-based diet.
For (Prime Minister) Liz Truss and (Environment Secretary) Ranil Jayawardena, helping farmers transition to lucrative and sustainable plant-based agriculture is a no-brainer.
‘I took action throughout September to campaign for a plant-based future, and I am taking action again today because Liz Truss and Ranil Jayawardena are still refusing to listen,’ said Mr. Bone, a parent and photographer from Thorpe-Le-Soken in Essex.
“My young girl’s future is at stake, and the Government’s answer is to reject advise from Oxford and Harvard and instead choose to push us all further into the climatic, ecological, and cost-of-living issues,” the author of the letter said.
The organization referenced a 2018 study from the University of Oxford that claimed “a worldwide shift to plant-based agriculture would free-up 76% of the area now utilized for food production.”
Additionally, it made reference to a 2019 Harvard University research on UK agriculture and food production, which it claimed found that the country would become carbon-negative if it switched entirely to a plant-based diet.
Fortnum & Mason didn’t exhibit any symptoms of a disturbance later today, however the cheese display that the protesters had spilt milk over had been taken down.
This afternoon at 2:30 pm, Fortnum & Mason was bustling and there was no evidence that any milk had been spilled on the ground inside the upscale department store.
The business was bustling with customers who didn’t seem to be aware of what had happened a short while before.
At Selfridges, the cheese display in front of the cheese counter has been taken down as of 3 p.m. The protesters dumped milk out here.
The store was bustling, and customers carried on as usual, so there was little further sign of a disturbance.
According to a Metropolitan Police spokesperson, officers responded to allegations of criminal damage to a commercial building on Oxford Street, W1A, at about 12:35 pm on Friday, October 7. Nobody was detained. The inquiries go on.
Just before noon on Friday, October 7, police from two different departments responded to allegations of criminal damage at a business location in Piccadilly, W1A. Nobody was detained. Investigations continue.
In recent months, Animal Rebellion has staged a number of demonstrations with the intention of upsetting the dairy business and putting pressure on the government to comply with its demands.
The government must “assist farmers and fishing communities to shift away from animal farming and fishing as part of an urgent and quick transition to a plant-based food system,” according to its first demand.
The government must “promise to rewild the freed-up land and seas as part of a bigger program of wildlife restoration and carbon drawdown,” according to the second requirement.
The gang attempted to obstruct the delivery of dairy last month; during one demonstration, they glued themselves to the front door of a busy dairy factory in Droitwich, Worcestershire, in an effort to stop the supply line.
Prior to Liz Truss’s first Prime Minister’s Questions, members of the gang were also detained for spray painting Big Ben with “fake milk” white paint.